Garment hanger



. BRANSDORF 2,723,787

A GARMENT HANGER Filed June 16. 1954 Nov. 15, 1955 INVENTOR.

14 IRVING BRHNsDoRF 11 TTORNE Y United States Patent 2,723,7s7 GARMENT HANGER Irving Brasdorf, Allentown, Pa. Application June 16, 19 54, Serial No. 7,137 4 claims. (c. 223- 93 This invention relates generally to garment hangers and more particularly to an improved construction of the type normally utilized for Shirts, coats, dresses, slips and thelke., i i

A principal object of the present invention is to provide such a hanger with garment clamping means operable by suitable squeezing pressure applied to the parts thereof with the fin'gers of the hands. v i ,z w

Another object` of the present invention is to mount the parts of the clamping means respectively over arm portions which when flexed by the 'application of pressure as aforesaid change in'curvature so as to open the clamping means for receivng the garment.

Other objects of the present invention will appear more fully hereinafter, it being understood that the invention consists substantially in the combination, Construction, location and relative arrangement of parts, all as described more fully hereinafter, as shown in the accompanying drawings and as finally pointed out in the appended claims. i

In the accompanying drawing:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a garment hanger embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical section on line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a horizontal section on line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is an enlarged front elevation of one side of the hanger showing the normal condition thereof;

Figure 5 is a section on line 5-5 of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a vertical section on line 6-6 of Figure 4; and

Figure 7 is the same as Figure 4 except that it shows the clamp part mounting arm portion depressed and the clamp part in open position.

The hanger embodying the present invention comprises a unitary main body 10 which is made of a resilient preferably plastic material. The main body'10 includes a web 11 which is marginally defined by a rib 12, the rib 12 being shaped so as to form centrally disposed head and neck portions designated respectively by the numbers 13 and 14. A pair of shoulder portions 15-15 underlie the latter and curve outwardly and downwardly on opposite sides thereof. The shoulders 15-15 termnate respectively in arm portions 16-16, each of which turns back respectively over the associated shoulder portion 15 and extends upwardly toward the head 13.

The hanger additionally comprises suspension means in the form of a wire stock member 17. The upper end portion of the member 17 is provided with a suitable hook, and the lower end portion is flattened as at 18. For securing the hook 17 to the main body member 10, the main body web 11 is provided with a central aperture 19, and above and below the latter there are formed a pair of bosses designated respectively by the numerals and 21. The lower end portion of the hook 17 is revolubly received in coaxially aligned botes which ex- "ice tend through the bosses 20 and 21, the flattened portion 18 being thereby disposed in the aperture 19 so as to abut the base of the boss 20.

The main body shoulder portions 15-15 are provided along the tops thereof respectively with arcuate slots 22-22. The latter are formed each by a pair of reversely curved portions 23-23 of the rib 12 which are extended as at 24-24 along the line of the shoulder 15 the extensions terminating short of one another so as to define an opening 25 into the' side of the slot 22.

The main body arm portions 16-16 extend along lines that are gently reversely curved and are positioned in superposed spaced relation to the shoulder portions 15-15, as a consequence of which there are formed a pair of slots 26-26 respectively underlying the arm portions 16-16 and `each communicating with a slot 22 through the opening 25. The inner end portions of the arms 16-16 terminate short of the head portion 13 so as to define with the opposed sides of the latter a pair of openings 27-27 which aford access to the slots 26-26.

The main body arm portions 16-16 mount clamping parts which are formed by thickening the rib 11 as at 28-28 over theinnermost portions of the arms 16-16 and extending the same as at 29-29 outwardly respectively over the arm portions `16-16. The undersurface of the extensions 29-29;are suitably recessed as at 30 and 31 so as to provide the outer end portion thereof with a number of downwardly presenting detents 32 that engage the underlying portion of the rib 11.

It is evident that a garment of the sleeveless type, for example, a sleeveless dress or a slip, can be accommodated by the hanger of the present invention by passing the shoulder engaging parts of the garment through the openings 27-27 into the slots 26-26 and then through the openings 25-25 into the slots 22-22, where it may be suitably arranged on the arcuate bottom sur-` faces of the slots 22-22. A similar garment can be accommodated by the hanger by passing the shoulder engaging parts of the garment through the openings 27-27 into the slots 26-26, where it may be suitably arranged on the arcuate top surfaces of the shoulders 15-15, spanning, if necessary, the openings 25-25. A sleeved garment, for example, a coat, can be accommodated by the hanger of the present invention by draping it over the clamping parts mounted by the arm portions 16-16. Of course, all of the foregong garments may be accommodated at the same time, and, in addition, still another garment, with or without sleeves, may be accommodated simultaneously by employing the clamping parts mounted by the arm portions 16-16. The action of these clamping parts will now be explained.

Normally the condition of the hanger is as shown in Figures 1 and 4, the detents 32 being resiliently biased firmly against the underlying portions of the rib 12. To open the clamp means the innermost end portions of the arms 15-15 are depressed by finger pressure, e. g., by placing the thumb and another finger of one hand respectively under a shoulder portion 15 and over the innermost end portion of the associated arm 16 and squeezing the same together. As this is done, the radii of curvature of the portions of arms 16-16 which underlie the extensions 29-29 are reduced while the radii of curvature of the extensions 29-29 remain unchanged, as a consequeuce of which the detents 32 separate from the underlying portions of the rib 12 to provide access for the shoulder engaging portions of a garment, as shown in Figure 7. After the garment is suitably ar ranged on the arm portions 16-16, the latter are released, whereupon the hanger is restored substantially to its normal condition by the inherent resilience of the material of which the main body 10 is made, the garment being thereby releasably clamped between the arm portions 16-16 and the detents 32 of the extensions 29-29. The clamp parts, of course, may be and normally are opcrated independently of one another.

lt will be understood, of course, that the hanger hereirabove shown and described is susceptible of various changes and modificatons which may be made from time to time Without any departure from the general principles or real spirit of the invention For example, the main body 10 need not be made of a plastc materal. ln addition, while the arm portions 16-16 are required to be resilient, the remainder of the main body 10, need not be resilient. Accordingly, it is intended to claim the present invention broadly, as well as specifically, as indicated in the appended claims,

What is claimed as new and useful is:

l. In a garment hanger of the character described, a unitary member having a central part and a pair of wing parts projecting in opposite directions outwardly from said central part, each of said wing parts being provided with an integral reversely turned extension of substantial length lying in the vertical plane of and spaced vertcally above its associated wing part to form a recess between said extension and wing parts, said extension being split for the major portion of the length thereof inwardly from its outer end portion to provide a pair of separable clamping jaws disposed immediately above the outer extremity of said wing part, said extensions being so relatively flexible that upon the application of pressure to their freely extending inner end portions sufiicient to bend the same toward their associated wing parts the clamping jaws aforesaid open sufiiciently to receive therebetween a portion of a garment to be supported by the hanger, said clamping jaws being normally resiliently biased when free of said pressure into closed garment clamping condition.

2. In a garment hanger of the character defined in claim 1 wherein the inner end of said reversely turned extension terminates short of said central part of the hanger to provide an entrance way to the recess formed between said extension and its associated wing part.

3. In a garment hanger of the character defined in claim 1 wherein the edge of each wing part is smoothly rounded at its outcr extremity to merge with the edge of said reversely turned extension of the wing part to tbereby adapt the hanger for conventional support of a coat or other such garment.

4. In a garment hanger of the character defined in claim 1 wheren at least one of the clamping jaws of each pair thereof is scrrated to provide a series of toothlike detents for frictionally engaging the garment clamped between the jaws.

References Citel in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

